Placer-mining machine.



C. R. DENNISON.

PLACER MINING MACHINE.

APPLIcATloN FILED JULY 2.1913.

`PnIend Dec. 28, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

LOOK

C. R. DENNISON.

PLACER MINING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED lULY 2, |913- LQQI Patented Dec. 28, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

II/JTNESSES.- l

C. R. DENNISON.

PLACER MINING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 2,19I3.

Mwf, Pa-IenIe-d De@.28,1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

IVITNESSES- C. R. DENNISON.

PLACER MINING MAcHlNE.

` AFPLICAUON FILED JULY 2,1913l L@Q v Patented Dec. 28, 1910.

C. R. DENNISON.

PLACER MLNLNG MACHINE.

i APPLICATION FILED JULY 2. :913. A V 9.. .LLuwm Dec. 25%, 19in.

ATTORNEY.

' a specification.

citadins ramena onirica.

.enannns n. DnnnIsoN, or Yonners'rowu,` omo.

PLACIIEBfMINlING MACHINE.

y Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mec.2a,1915.

application filed July 2, 191,3. serial No. 777,110.

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that l, CHARLES R. DENNI- soN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Youngstown, in the county of Mahoning and State of hiO, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Placer- Mining Machined of which 'the following is f My invention relates to machines for use Ainplacer mining and its object residesin the f provision of a transportable self-propelled apparatus comprising an association of ele- \ments which cooperate to eect a rapid and `cleanl separation of the valuable minerals from the worthless matter in metalliferous material delivered to the machine from a placer mine or other deposit.

An embodiment ofmy invention has been shown in the accompanying drawings in the various views of which like partsare similarly designated and in which,

'Figures 41A and 1B represent conjointly a side elevation of the machine, and in which Fig. 2, represents a horizontal section taken along the line 2-2, Figs. 1A and-1B, Fig. 3,

an enlarged transverse section along the line 3-3, Fig. 1A, Fig. 4, an enlarged fragmen-l tary section taken along the line 44-4, Fig. 2,

and, Fig. 5, an enlarged section taken along` the line 5 6, FigjlA, looking in the directionof the arrow drawn across said line. d

Referring to the drawingsby numericalreference characters the numeral 2'desig nates a-selflpropelled, wheeled carrier upon `which the "arious'element's of the apparatusy are assembled in cooperative relation to eachv othern .l l f The metalliferous material obtained from the mine by means ofadredge, steam-shovel v`or other suitable contrivance is delivered onto a vibratingo grizzly 3 at the front end of.y the carrier, which lseparates rocks and other coarse matter from the. value-bearing are connected. A cylindrical screen 7 formed integral with the washer at the discharge end thereof, receives the material after it has passed through the washer and edects a4 cleaner separation of the values and the worthless matter contained therein. `'The tailings which are discharged through the open end of the screen, fall onto an endless belt 8 which carries Ithem into a bin 9 at the rear end of the machine from which they are subsequently removed to a dump remote from the carrier, by means of an endless belt 1() which is operatively mounted on an adjustable boom 12 which projects outwardly from the rear end of the machine.

The valuable matter which is sifted through the meshes of the revolving screen falls onto the upper one of a series of reversedly inclined sluice boxes 13 through which it flows from one end to the other, while being concentrated. The lowermost sluice-box discharges its contents onto a grizzly 14 through which the concentrates are discharged onto an inclined riiiled surface 15 disposed inl a compartment 16 of a longitudinally partitioned .tank 17, the other compartment 18 of which contains an amalgamator 19 into which thematerial. discharged from the said surface is delivered, and in which the metallic parts are extracted from the remaining worthless matter by amalgamation. ',Ihe amalgam formed in the last mentioned element of my machine is delivered into a retort 20 which is preferably heated by means `of the exhaust gasesfrom the engine pro 4 vided to operate the apparatus, and in which the gold is separated from the mercury with which it, is combined, by volatilization of the latter, the vapors being subsequently returned to the arnalgamator. .lhe tailings from the amalgamator as well as those discharged from' the grizzly at the end of the lowermost sluice box are by means of an endless bucket-chain 22 carried into the same bin 9 in which the tailings from the 'revolving screen are deposited and from which they are removed to the dump by means of the before-mentioned, outwardly projecting conveyer 10 at the rear end of theA i machine. The water "required in the continuous treatment of the material as above described is, by means of a pump, obtained from a suitable source and" delivered inside the revolving washer and screen through a erforated` vipe 23, and after it has perormed its 'unction in the operation of the apparatus,lit is'by means of a pump' 24, drawn out of the tank in which the amalgamator is disposed and into a stack 25 which indirect connection.. with the at its upper end connects with the upper one of the sluice boxes 13. By thus ,using thev is limited as only a small' quantity is Vrequired to replace that lost in the operation. An engine 21 preferably of the internal combustion type, ismounted on the carrier in driving connection with the various elements, and a transmission mechanism of suitable construction is provided for the purpose of transmitting the movement of the engine to one of the axles of the carrier when it is desired to transport the apparatus from one place to another.

Having thus briefly explained the operative relation of the various elements comprised in my invention, I will now proceed to describe the same in detail. I desire it understood, however, that I do notV limit myself to thev use of the exact constructions shown in the drawings, it being obvious that many variations in the design and arrangement of the various parts comprised in the apparatus can be made without in any way departing from` the spirit of my invention and without lessening itseiiciency for the rapid and complete separation of the values from extraneous matter in metalliferous ores and sands.

Thecarrier 2 is composed of a supporting frame 26 made of structural iron and' mounted upon two trucks 27. A superstructure 28 rigidly mounted on the frame 26 on uprights'29 is provided to support the nele-L vated parts of the apparatus, such as the` engine, is obvious and plainly shown in the drawings, no 4detailed description ofthe same is thought necessary, itbeing understood that all the parts are adapted for simultaneous ,operation` by either vdirect or drivingl shaft of the engine. y i

'.lhe grizzly 3a`t the front end of the machlne is -surmounted by a hopper 31 into which the material .is delivered by the steamshovel -or`other contrivance used for excavating the metalliferous deposit.

The grizzly consists of an inclined trough provided as lusual with a grating through which the fine matter falls onto the slanting bottom of a subjacent pit 32 from whichr it is removed by the endless bucket con- 'Ihe rocks and other coarse parts which remained on the grating of. thel grizzly, fall over the lower end of the same onto the endless 4belt 4 which extends laterally from the machine to discharge its load onto a remote dump.

The inclined grizzly is, as best shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, mounted for vibration upon a roller 33 disposed beneath its lower surface at its lower end, and a rocker arm 34 which supports its opposite end. The rocker arm is oscillated by an eccentric 35 which receives its' rotary motion from a `shaft 36 which by means of a chain 37 is operatively connected with a shaft 38 which is driven by connection with the beforementioned line shaft.

The rocker arm 34 at one side of the grizzly and the roller, the end of the endless belt conveyer 4 and the eccentric shaft 36 at the opposite side of the samev are mounted on brackets 39 and 40 which are Vbolted tov the adjacent uprights 29 of the superstructure of the carrier, and it will be observed that by reversing the position of these brackets, the parts maybe readily adjusted to dump the worthless matter discharged fover the grizzly, at the opposite side of the machine.

The washer 6 consists of a conoidal drum which is attached at the end of the cylindrical screen 7 in axial alinement therewith, its interior surface may be provided with any suitable means such as the' bars indicatedatll in Fig. 1A, for disintegrating the material, and an agitating device shown in broken lines at 42 in the same figure, is

mounted inside the screen for the usual purpose. y l y In thevoperation of the apparatus the connected washer and screen rotate about their alined, longitudinal `axes and they are slightly inclined toward the discharge end of the screen which is provided with an outwardly iaringiiange 43 to direct the tailings ont'o the inclined endless belt 8 which conveys them into the bin' 9 at the front end of the carrier.A

The sluice'boxes 13 are reversedly inclined and connected at their ends so that the material discharged over the lower end of one I willlfall into the upper portion of the iml mediately "subjacent one. The lower-most riffle box is at yits discharge end connected with the grizzly 14 which is disposed above the upper portion of the inclined, riiiied t der treatment. veyer 5 whichyelevate s it to the washer 6. l

The grizzlyll which connects with the lower box 13 is movably, mounted upon suitable supports and a pair of cams 68 on a ideama -rotary'shaft 59 engages the lower surface of the grizzly for the purpose of imparting a vlbratory motion thereto. The shaft 59 is by means of a sprocket-chain 70 connected with a counter-shaft 71 which receives its rotary movement from the shaft 30.I

The sluice box 15 'is disposed atl one side of the longitudinal partition 44 which divides the tank into two compartments, and its lower end is spaced from the adjacent end of the tank to discharge the matter flowing over the same into the bottom portion of the tank whence it flows through an opening 45 in the partition into the amalgamator which is mounted in the compartment at the opposite side of the same.

While the amalgamator shown in elevation in the drawings, may be of any suitable construction, I preferably employ an apparatus composed of a cylinder in which a rotary device is mounted to convey the material fed into one of its ends, to its opposite end at which it is discharged into the compartment in which it is disposed.

rll`he cylinder is by means of pipes 48 connected with the retort 20 and which is heated by the exhaust gases of the engine conveyed thereto through a conduit 47.

The mercury vapors generated in the retort are returned to the amalgamator by means vof pipes 46. The tailings discharged from the amalgamator cylinder are by means of a suction-wheel 49 shown in Figs. 2 and 4 of the drawings, drawn into a` iue 50 whichat 51 has an over-flow in communication'withthe rearmost portion of the tank from which the' tailings are by means of the-inclined endless bucket chain 22, removed to the bin 9 into which the matter discharged from the rotary screen is likewise. deposited.

The buckets vof the conveyer 22 are perforated as shown in lig.l 4, for the purpose of draining the water from the tailings into the\ end of ythe tank from where it {iow's through the space around ther lower portion fof the amalgamator cylinder and through the space beneath the riviie-box, lto the forward end of the tank, whence i't is drawn by the action of the lpump 2,4 Iand discharged y into the 'stack 25 which at its upper end connects with the uppermost riie-box.

The perforated pipe .23 through which the water is supplied inside the washer and the screemmay be connected by any suitable lmeansjat the'lower end ofa vertical conduit'52, with av source of supply vfrom which the water can beldrawn either by the pump onthe carrier orby a separate sguction-pump.

The" bi'n '9v discharges the tailings onto the endless belt conveyer 10 which as hereinbefore describedis mounted on a boom 12 which extends outwardlyfrom the machine l yonv the engine to dump its load at a point remote therefrom. The boom which is made of structural iron, is pivotally mounted at its lower extremity in bearings 53 on the rear end of the carrier, and it is at its front end, suspended by means of a tackle 54 from a winding drum 55 which is mounted on the superstructure 28.

The drum which is normally held against rotation by a pawl and ratchet or other suitable device, is by means of gear wheels 56 `and 5T operativelyconnectedfwith a shaft 58 which may be rotated byY the application of a hand-crank to its squared extremity for the purpose of varying the angle of inclination of the boom.

rhe endless conveyer mounted on the boom, runs at its lower end around a drum 59 which by means of a vch-ain 60 receives its In the construction shown in Fig 1B of the drawings theboom is positioned so asv to dump its load at a point rearward of the machine, but as it may be more desirable to deposit the tailings at'points at either side of the machine, ll haveprovided at the extreme end of `the carrier two right-angularly mounted shafts which areoperatively .connected by means of beveled gears65.

One of :these shafts has a sprocket wheel which by means of a chain 66, may be connected with the.beforementioned counter- `shaft 61 and the other shaft which isdesignated in the drawings by the Anumeral 168, .is adap'ted for the attachment of the conveyer drum at the lower end of the boomV when the vlatter together with the bearings on which itis mounted, is moved into operative relation-to said shaft. f

A suitable transmission mechanism designated by the' reference Acharacter 67 `in Fig. 1A is disposedvbetween a driving wheel 21 and-a driven wheel on one of the axles of thefro'nt truck of the carrier 'for' the purpose of propelling the machine to or from the point at which-it is desired to operate.

ll claiml. A machine of the'type described.,I including cooperative elements for the extraction o-f/,metal from metalliferous material, comprising an amalgamator and a retort connected therewith to receive the amalgam discharged therefrom and adapted to recover the amalgam by vaporizatiomkan engine in drivingconnection with said elements, and means .for conducting the exhaust from said enginevto said retort to' Lheat the contents thereof. n l 4 type described, 111- 2. A machine of the cluding coperative elements for the extracti'jon of metal from metalliferous material comprising an amalgamator and a retort connected therewith to receive the amalgam discharged therefrom and adapted to recover the amalgam by vaporization, a receptacle within which is arranged said amalgamator, for receiving said metalliferous material A for feeding to said amalgamator, means for the treatment of said material preliminary to delivery into said receptacle and feeding to said amalgamator, said amalgamator being adapted to receive said material from said receptacle, suction means arranged in Asaid vamalgamator to take the material therefrom after treatment therein, heat-operated means, in driving connection with said elements, adapted to deliver a high temperature exhaust. i

3. A machine of the type described, iny\cluding coperatived elements for the extraction of metal from metalliferous mav'terial, comprising an amalgamator, a retort connected therewith to receive the amalgam discharged therefrom and arranged to recover the amalgam by vaporization, heat-actuated means in driving connection with said amalgamator, and means for conducting the exhaust from said heat actu- 0 ated means to said retort to heat, the conengine, and means for conducting the exhaust from said driving means to said retort to heat the contents thereof.

5. A machine of the type described, including coperative elements for the extraction of metal from metalliferous material, comprising an amalgamator having an upstanding cylinder, with a suction or exhaust producing member arranged therein for effecting the removal of the contents of said amalgamator, a retort connected to said amalgamator to receive the amalgam discharged therefrom and adapted to recover the amalgam by vaporization, an engine in driving connection with said elements and means for. conducting the exhaust from said engine to said retort to heat the contents thereof.

6. A machine of the type described, 1ncluding coperative elements forextracting vmetal from metalliferous material, coming means, screening means and means for subjecting the material to a sluicing action. In testimony whereof I have ahxed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES R. DENNISON.

Witnesses G. J. ROLLANDET, L. RHOADES. 

